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‘Elf’ spreads Christmas cheer as it marks 20th anniversary

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 11:56:57 GMT

If smiling is your favorite, get ready for some festive news! One of the most beloved Christmas movies of all time, “Elf,” celebrated its 20th anniversary, and the joyous occasion is as infectious as Will Ferrell’s iconic enthusiasm.“10 a.m. Santa’s coming to town.” Who could forget Buddy’s ecstatic exclamation, “SANNTAAA!!! Oh, my God. Santa here? I know him! I know him!”Will Ferrell’s gleeful performance has turned “Elf” into a Christmas tradition cherished by millions over the past two decades.Reflecting on the film’s enduring appeal, cast members share their astonishment at its cultural impact. “You work equally hard on everything you ever do, and you never think something’s going to stick in the culture like this,” remarked Todd Komarnicki, the film’s producer.To commemorate the 20th anniversary, the Empire State Building joined the celebration by spreading Christmas cheer. Spe...

Step back in time: Annual classic car rally revives vintage glory in Havana

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 11:56:57 GMT

HAVANA, CUBA (WSVN) — The charm of yesteryear enveloped the streets of Havana on Sunday as vintage American cars, vibrant and iconic, took center stage during the Annual Classic and Antique Cars Rally.Chevys, Fords, and Pontiacs from the 1950s, adorned in vivid colors, raced through the city, offering a nostalgic glimpse into the remnants of pre-revolution Cuba. These classic automobiles, painted in unusual bright hues, are a common sight along the city’s Malecon (sea wall) and other popular sites, primarily serving to take tourists on rides. The decades-long embargo imposed by the United States against Cuba rendered importing new cars and parts impossible, encouraging Cubans to become some of the world’s most inventive mechanics. This ingenuity not only kept these classic cars operational but also contributed to their preservation as cherished symbols of the island’s rich automotive history. As the Annual Classic and Antique Cars Rally continues to captivate...

South Miami Police seek public’s help in locating missing endangered man

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 11:56:57 GMT

The South Miami Police Department is seeking assistance from the public in locating 60-year-old Danny Draper.According to police, Draper, who suffers from a mental disorder, went missing from Larkin Hospital on Friday, Dec. 1, around 9 a.m.Draper, currently under the custody of the Department of Children and Families (DCF), reportedly walked away from Larkin Hospital at 7031 SW 62 Ave. Police said he fled on foot in an unknown direction and has not returned. At the time of his disappearance, Draper was last seen wearing a gray shirt, black pants and white sneakers. He is described as 5 feet 10 inches tall, weighing 180 pounds, with brown eyes, gray hair, and a long gray beard.Anyone with information about Danny Draper’s whereabouts is urged to contact the South Miami Police Department.

Former career US diplomat charged with secretly spying for Cuban intelligence for decades

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 11:56:57 GMT

MIAMI (AP) — A former American diplomat who served as U.S. ambassador to Bolivia has been charged with serving as a mole for Cuba’s intelligence services dating back decades, the Justice Department said Monday.Newly unsealed court papers allege that Manuel Rocha engaged in “clandestine activity” on Cuba’s behalf since at least 1981, including by meeting with Cuban intelligence operatives and providing false information to U.S. government officials about his travels and contacts.The complaint, filed in federal court in Miami, charges Rocha with crimes including acting as an illegal agent of a foreign government and comes amid stepped up Justice Department criminal enforcement of illicit foreign lobbying on U.S. soil. The 73-year-old had a two-decade career as a U.S. diplomat, including top posts in Bolivia, Argentina and the U.S. Interests Section in Havana.The charging document traces Rocha’s illegal ties with Cuba’s notoriously sophisticated intelligence ser...

UK signs agreement to rejoin EU’s Horizon science program

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 11:56:57 GMT

LONDON — The U.K. has passed the final milestone in rejoining Horizon Europe after leaving the EU science program in 2021 as part of Brexit.British researchers will again participate in the program from the beginning of next month, after the EU-UK Specialised Committee on Participation in Union Programmes formally approved a new association agreement on Monday.Speaking to reporters on a visit to Brussels to mark the occasion, U.K. Science Minister Michelle Donelan described the agreement to join the program as “a bespoke deal.”“Our association with Horizon gives us a seat at the table in the world’s largest research collaboration program,” she said.“So there’s good news for scientists, for researchers, up and down the country in the U.K. We’re delighted that we’ve managed to get to a point where we reached an agreement.”The Cabinet minister conceded that the U.K. would not have voting rights in the scheme under the agreement, but noted that when the U.K. was ...

Keir Starmer breaks the great Labour taboo: Praising Margaret Thatcher

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 11:56:57 GMT

LONDON — You can overhaul your party, expel your predecessor, and rip up a host of left-wing pledges. Just don’t praise Margaret Thatcher.Keir Starmer — the opposition Labour leader who polls suggest is firmly on track to become the U.K.’s next prime minister — provoked howls of outrage this weekend in mildly praising the former free-marketeer Conservative PM, who remains a deeply divisive figure on the left.On Monday, Starmer was forced once again to defend his respect for Thatcher for having had “a mission and a plan,” as his comments risked overshadowing a major economic speech.The tempest erupted after Starmer made a deliberate pitch to Tory voters in the right-leaning Telegraph newspaper. The Labour boss hailed Thatcher as one of the few modern leaders to enact “meaningful change in modern British politics.”“Margaret Thatcher sought to drag Britain out of its stupor by setting loose our natural entrepreneurialism,” he said of the ...

France breathes sigh of relief as Mercosur trade talks stall

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 11:56:57 GMT

PARIS — French officials are relieved that the free-trade deal between the EU and countries of the South American Mercosur bloc is unlikely to land anytime soon. Brussels was hoping to push talks over the controversial trade deal over the finish line during a meeting in Rio de Janeiro this week. But negotiations faced a setback as Brazil — the rotating president of Mercosur bloc — signaled that the agreement will need the nod of the new Argentinian government led by anarcho-capitalist Javier Milei. The news prompted European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Trade Commisisoner Valdis Dombrovskis to ditch a visit to Rio de Janeiro at the last minute. What sounds like bad news for EU negotiators is music to French ears. “It’s good news,” said Marie-Pierre Vedrenne, a French MEP and trade specialist from President Emmanuel Macron’s Renew group, echoing the view of other French officials. France has been a long-time opponent of the EU-Mercosur deal,&n...

Israel, Turkey and South Korea big winners in the Ukraine war arms race

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 11:56:57 GMT

The West has pledged to do whatever it takes to support Ukraine while also returning militaries to a war-ready status, but it is defense contractors in South Korea, Turkey and Israel which are reaping many of the early deals.Arms makers in those countries, where governments sustain military investment and production pipelines to maintain their own security, made early gains in the months following the February 2022 full-scale invasion of Ukraine by Russia, according to the latest analysis of weapon sales and military services revenue from the world’s top 100 contractors carried out by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI).“South Korea, Israel, Turkey are countries that stand out as being able to respond to the increased expenditure,” said Lucie Béraud-Sudreau, who helped compile the data for SIPRI as part of an annual update that’s been ongoing since the end of the Cold War.Turkey’s four largest defense companies saw their 2022 revenues rise by 22 percen...

Doug Burgum announces he’s suspending his 2024 presidential campaign

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 11:56:57 GMT

(CNN) — North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum announced Monday he’s suspending his campaign for president.“Our decision to run for President came from a place of caring deeply about every American and a mission to re-establish trust in America’s leadership and our institutions of democracy,” he said in a statement. “While this primary process has shaken my trust in many media organizations and political party institutions, it has only strengthened my trust in America.”The conservative second-term governor, who launched his 2024 bid in June, focused his campaign on the economy, energy and national security, and warned of China being the “No. 1 threat” to the United States. Burgum leaned into his small-town roots and his business background as a former software firm CEO and Microsoft executive.Burgum poured millions of his own dollars into his campaign to boost his candidacy.But he lacked the national name recognition compared with his rivals, and his appearances at t...

US Supreme Court scrutinizes controversial opioid crisis settlement that would give Sackler family immunity

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 11:56:57 GMT

(CNN) — The Supreme Court is hearing oral arguments Monday morning in one of the highest-profile bankruptcy cases in recent memory: Whether or not to approve OxyContin-maker Purdue Pharma’s controversial agreement that would give billions of dollars to victims of the opioid epidemic while protecting members of the Sackler family, who owned the company, from current and future opioid-related civil lawsuits.While the up-to-$6 billion deal was initially approved by a New York court in May, it was blocked from moving forward after the US Trustee Program, a division of the US Justice Department, requested that the highest court review the settlement. The Supreme Court is scheduled to hear oral arguments on Monday.Purdue Pharma, which was owned and operated by the families of the late brothers Mortimer and Raymond Sackler, has said there will be no $6 billion settlement without releasing family members from liability, but the US Trustee has argued that such an arrangement i...